The forecasts for the recruitment industry in 2017 look highly promising and incredibly competitive. With the level of competition so fierce, it is natural for the best in the field to try to find ways to innovate their methods. To stay relevant and competitive, a recruiter always needs to stay up to date on the latest emerging trends in recruitment practices. Some items on this list aren’t entirely new; a few of these trends emerged in 2016 and will persist going into 2017.

The rising popularity of these recruitment trends should come as no surprise to recruiters. Failure to spot these trends and adapt your own recruitment process accordingly can spell failure for your team. It is also important to note that it is impossible to accurately predict how the recruitment atmosphere will turn out next year. A recruiter should be vigilant and adaptable should changes in trends arise. However, even if predicting every facet of 2017 can not be done, it’s fairly easy to make intelligent guesses as to how things will play out.

These are the recruitment trends that we think will play prominent roles in 2017:

#1. Companies Will Make Use of Talent Analytics

It’s a numbers game, it has always been, and it will always be. To disregard hard facts and data in determining your company’s recruitment processes is a terrible idea. While some recruiters have had tastes of success in making recruitment decisions based on their instincts and intuition, long-term success is dependent on being able to analyze data and statistics. The companies who take recruitment analytics seriously will most likely hire dedicated specialists to assess talent metrics on a more in-depth scale. It is a basic principle in the analysis of talent metrics to determine a potential candidate’s ability to return whatever the company may invest in him. In simpler terms, data can help determine whether a candidate has the competencies and skills required of their position.

#2. Employers Will Prioritize Creating a Great Candidate Experience

The playing field is getting more and more equalized when it comes to recruitment. HR departments no longer have the leverage they once had because candidates have more options and flexibility these days. Talent is becoming a sparse commodity while recruitment efforts are becoming overly saturated and it should be in the interest of all companies to adapt accordingly. The first step is simple: make applying for your company easier and more accessible. Companies can not afford to enforce a wait-and-see approach when it comes to hiring quality talent. A hiring process should be drafted with candidate experience in mind. A bad experience in the recruitment process could potentially turn candidate off to the prospect of working for your company.

Given that, learn from the people focused companies who offer great recruitment experiences to their potential candidates. These successful companies will go over every single recruitment detail covering job postings, job descriptions, interviews, tests, and more to ensure the best possible experience for the candidate.

#3. HR Will Be Looking to Expand Their Sourcing Scope

In the age of social media and new-age technology, it is now easier than ever to reach out to all sorts of people from all corners of the globe. Hiring quality talent is difficult enough as it is, but getting quality talent that perfectly suits the needs of your company is where the real challenge lies. That is why more and more HR specialists are expanding their traditional talent pools and targeting more people that they couldn’t reach before.

On the other side of the spectrum, another emerging trend is having HR departments tapping into their own company’s resources for quality talent. An underutilized way of filling key company positions is sourcing talent from other departments within a company. For example, you may never know that your IT specialist is looking to shift into a career in Marketing unless you ask. Tap that resource and make the most out of it. Developing internal talent proves to be more efficient and cost-effective as opposed to hiring from the outside.

#4. Technology Will Boost Efficiency and Precision in the Hiring Process

Recruitment software are quietly emerging as a prominent trend in the world of hiring. While a substantial bulk of crafting a good recruitment process still heavily relies on human intellect, technology can help make the process much easier on the part of the recruiter. Technology affects various parts of the hiring process spanning communications, research, data analysis, and so much more. While technology has already served as a major game-changer in the recruitment industry, we have yet to see the limits of its potential.

#5. Companies Will Focus on Marketing the Employee Experience

This will probably be one of the most common recruitment trends to look out for next year. More than anything else, candidates (particularly the younger ones) will be looking to prioritize their career development over anything else when considering their options. That is why companies will prioritize on branding their employee experience in such a way that will entice prospective talent to want to work for them. It’s a fairly easy concept to grasp, market your companies to make sure that you attract the best possible talent. Build your branding on details like employee benefits, career developments, and other enticing details.

What do you think of the trends that we’ve listed here? Are there any that we’ve missed? Perhaps you may know some other emerging trends to look out for in 2017. Feel free to leave your comments down below.